Two Weeks In Loughlin City
by fuer grissa ost drauka
Summary: In “She Doesn’t Smile Anymore”, Dawn mentioned that they had been in Loughlin City for two weeks. Ever wonder what happened during that time? sequel to "She Doesn't Smile Anymore" Buffy/Logan Wolverine - BtVS/X-Men Movie
1. Day One

**Title:** _"Two Weeks In Loughlin City"_

**Author: **_Fuer Grissa Ost Drauka_

**Rating: **_PG_

**Category:** _Buffy/X-Men_

**Pairing:** _Buffy/Logan (Wolverine)_

**Disclaimer: **_Don't own any of it._

**Spoilers: **_No spoilers. Set after "Chosen" (Buffy) and before X-Men 1._

**Status: **_Incomplete_

**Summary:**_ In "She Doesn't Smile Anymore", Dawn mentioned that they had been in Loughlin City for two weeks. Ever wonder what happened during that time? _

**Feedback: **_always appreciated_

**Author's Notes: **_(sigh) "She Doesn't Smile Anymore" was_ supposed _to be just a simple one-shot. Due to a couple of reviews, _however,_ it's kinda spun out of control. The product? This, and one - _possibly two _- more stories. There will be a total of 14 parts to this story. Some will be of a decent length; others will be fairly shorter. _

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_Day One…_

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Buffy hated this town. She hadn't even been here for an entire day yet, but she hated it. There was no nightlife. None. Not a single vampire or demon. What kind of town doesn't have vamps and demons?

Loughlin City, apparently.

So, instead of getting a nice, tension-relieving slay, she was stuck either wandering the streets of a town that was actually _smaller_ than Sunnydale had been or staying in the hotel room with Dawn. The latter was something she wanted to avoid as much as possible. It wasn't that she didn't love her sister. She did - hell, she'd died for her - but it was suffocating just being around her.

Guilt radiated from Dawn whenever they were together, making the atmosphere awkward and tense. It had been like that ever since she'd returned to the house with the scythe. She was under near 'round the clock surveillance, as if Dawn believed that if she let the Slayer out of her sight for too long, she'd take off without the younger girl. In short, it was irritating the hell out of the Slayer. Hence the reason Buffy was wandering the streets in the middle of a snow storm.

Buffy grimaced slightly as the smell of alcohol and smoke assaulted her enhanced senses. There was something else that permeated the air as well. A scent she was thoroughly familiar with. Adrenaline, mixed with sweat and blood. It sent her senses into overdrive and called out to the primal nature of the Slayer in her.

A bar fight would be fun.

Not as much fun as taking on an entire nest of vampires with Faith, but it would be better than nothing. She'd have to hold back a lot of her strength, but it would still be enough to release her pent up anxiousness and frustration. The Slayer eased into the bar, taking in the scene. Instead of the bar fight she was expecting, the room off to the side held a large cage. A slow grin spread across her face. A cage fight would be even better than a bar fight.

People always underestimated her because of her size. They tended to automatically associate her petite height and build with frailty. Buffy always enjoyed showing them the error of their judgment. Besides, there was the added bonus that winning could earn her a decent amount of cash.

Buffy sat down at the bar and unzipped her jacket. She set a few bills on the bar as the bartender glanced over at her. "Just a beer." He nodded, and Buffy turned her attention to the fight currently going on. She studied the two fighters intently, noting the skill and style of each. The first was just a simple bar-fighter. No real technique or evident training, just brute strength. The second…

The sound of glass impacting against wood startled her out of her daze. She turned to see that the bartender had set a bottle of beer down in front of her. "Thanks," she picked up the bottle and took a long drink before turning back to the fight.

The second was a warrior. His movements were fluid and powerful, without wasting any effort with flashiness. All deadly grace and restraint - like an animal toying with it's prey. A fighter. Her equal.

A low growl rose up in the back of Buffy's throat, drawing curious glances from the few people around her. She paid them no attention. Her focus was on _him_. She wanted to fight him. _That_ would be a real challenge.

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The hairs on the back of Wolverine's neck stood on end as his enhanced hearing picked up an animalistic growl. Before he could fully comprehend the meaning, a growl of his own rippled through him answering back to the first one. He wasted no more time with his opponent, knocking the larger man out with a quick elbow to the face. His eyes darted around, almost frantically, for the source of the growl. A small blonde caught his attention as she threw a quick glance his way - her eyes locking on his for a brief moment - before she pushed the door open and stepped outside.

His eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared as she disappeared from view. His frustrated growl was drowned out by the cheering and yelling crowd that had gathered for the fight. He knew that by the time he could get to the door, she'd be long gone. She had thrown down a challenge, and he had answered it. She would be back, he knew. He had seen his mirror in that instant, and knew for a fact that she, like himself, would not back down from a challenge - especially one that she had initiated.

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_**to be continued...**_


	2. Day Two

**Disclaimer: **_still don't own any of it._

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_Day Two…_

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He could smell her even before he stepped through the door. A light scent of vanilla and jasmine, mixed with restrained power, leather and sweat. Feminine and sensual. A low growl rose up in the back of his throat, as his gaze settled on her. She moved around the cage with an almost feline-like grace, avoiding each poorly timed attack from her opponent. His eyes narrowed, and another growl, louder this time, left his throat when she didn't answer with one of her own.

She used her opponent's momentum to flip him over her shoulder and pinned him to the ground with a knee in his chest. She glanced up at him then with a smirk and a mischievous gleam in her eye. Wolverine tensed almost unnoticeably. She had known he was there. He moved forward, intent on ending this game of hers. Halfway to the cage, an almost imperceptible shake of her head stopped him. She sent him a teasing grin as her next opponent stepped into the cage behind her.

Wolverine took a seat over at the bar. She wanted him to watch, he realized. Just like she had watched him fight last night. She wanted him to see what she was capable of before they had their fight. Wanted him to see firsthand that she wasn't fragile, so he wouldn't hold back with her. "Who is she?" he asked the bartender as a beer was set down in front of him.

He shrugged. "Goes by 'Slayer'. She came in here last night for a while, drank a beer, watched a fight, and left. Came back tonight and wanted a go in the cage for herself. Everyone was a bit skeptical at first, she looks like a light wind could knock her over, but she proved that she can more than hold her own." The bartender gave him a considering glance. "She could probably give you a good run for your money."

Wolverine grunted noncommittally and turned back to watch the fight. There was no doubt about it; she could more than give him a run for his money. He wouldn't be able to hold back at all with her. He hadn't had a fight like that in a long time, and he was definitely looking forward to it.

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Buffy could feel his eyes on her as she continued to fight her opponent, and it was slowly adding to her frustration. She needed to end the fight quickly before she accidentally hurt her opponent. She let him land a blow to her ribs and grabbed his arm. She twisted him around and pinned his arm behind his back. With a sharp blow to his head, being careful to temper most of her strength, Buffy let his unconscious body slide to the ground.

She paid little attention to the announcer as he declared her the winner. Her focus was on Wolverine. He was perched on the edge of his seat, body tense, breathing bordering erratic. His eyes were narrowed at her. He obviously hadn't liked that last stunt of hers - letting herself get hit. She broke her gaze away from him as the announcer finished and walked over to the bar where he waited.

She silently slipped onto the barstool beside him and ordered a beer, not looking in his direction. The bartender set a bottle in front of her, and she took a long drink.

"What kind of a name is 'Slayer'?"

She turned to him with a small smirk and raised a brow. "What kind of a name is 'Wolverine'?"

"Logan," he introduced himself.

"Buffy."

It was his turn to raise a brow. "What kind of a name is 'Buffy'?"

She shot him a glare. It faltered when she realized that he was just teasing her.

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_**to be continued…**_

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	3. Day Three

**Disclaimer: **_still don't own any of it._

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_Day Three…_

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What was it about some guys that they just couldn't take a hint? Honestly, how many times did she have to tell him she wasn't interested before he'd finally get a clue. Buffy rolled her eyes and drained the remainder of her beer. She frowned at the empty bottle. She'd need something a lot stronger than beer, if she had to put up with him much longer.

Unfortunately, she'd tried everything short of violence to get the guy - Steve, or something like that - to leave her alone. Everything from 'I have a boyfriend' to 'I'm gay', but this guy must've gotten a few too many blows to the head during his cage match or something. So, the next time the bartender glanced in her direction, she just asked for a shot of Jack and reminded herself that if she hit the guy beside her, she'd more than likely be kicked out of the bar for the night. Knowing her luck, that would likely mean that she'd miss her chance at meeting up with Logan tonight.

With that thought in mind, she focused instead on knocking back the shot. She settled the glass back on the bar as a warm, tingly sensation swept over her. Damn. No wonder Faith raved about this stuff. With as quickly as the Slayer metabolism worked, there wasn't much that could give her a buzz with a single shot, but _that_-

Buffy paused as the tingling persisted. _That_ wasn't the Jack, she realized. Her head jerked towards the door as he pushed it open. A small smile worked its way onto her face as he walked in, but she schooled her features as soon as she noticed it. Unfortunately, he had caught it before she could destroy the evidence. Great. Last thing she needed was to come off as some grinning schoolgirl with a crush.

She frowned slightly. Not that she _had_ a crush. He was a warrior. Like her. A worthy opponent who would be a challenge, unlike the locals she had fought last night. That was it. There was nothing crush-like at all going on, she told herself as he walked over to her, eyes not leaving hers. There was a small smirk playing at the corner of his mouth as he took the seat next to her, breaking the eye contact.

Figures, that'd be when the guy next to her finally realized that he wasn't holding her attention. 'Maybe I should hang around Logan more often.' Buffy mused with a slight grin. 'To keep away the losers,' she added quickly.

"Hey, bud, do you mind? The little lady and I were trying to have a conversation," Steve glared over at Logan, trying - unsuccessfully - to intimidate him.

He had to be joking. He couldn't really think that _that_ would impress her. And a conversation, right. "Since when is talking at someone when they're actively ignoring you considered a conversation? Really," she added in a patronizing tone, "you shouldn't use big words if you don't understand what they mean." She turned back to Logan. "You wanna go somewhere else?" He nodded. "Great." She stood and grabbed her jacket off the back of the stool.

Apparently, the guy was even dumber than she'd originally thought. He stood and grabbed her arm. "Hey, we weren't done here." The faint sound of a knife being drawn pulled her attention back to Logan. She glanced down, her eyes widening a fraction as she noticed the blades protruding from his hand. She shook her head slightly, wordlessly telling him to put them away. She'd take care of this.

She turned back to Steve and smiled sweetly up at him. "Actually, I think we were." Her knee shot up sharply into his groin, causing him to release the grip on her arm. She turned and walked out of the bar without paying him any more attention, missing the slight smirk Logan was wearing as he followed her out.

"So, your place or mine?" Buffy asked once they were outside.

Logan just raised a brow.

"Not like that," Buffy backpedaled quickly. "I just meant that we probably _both_ have some questions that shouldn't be discussed where just anyone can overhear them."

"Mine's closer," he said as he started walking, leaving Buffy to catch up with him.

--

"So, part demon?" Buffy asked once they were inside Logan's trailer.

"No."

"Evil cyborg?"

"No."

"Government 'Frankenstein-type' creation?"

"…Not exactly."

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_**to be continued…**_

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